Hunting peppers in Guadeloupe (Caribbean/West Indies)

Dinsdale

Dinsdale

I'm probably going to Guadeloupe this year. Maybe I'll also spend a few days on nearby islands (Antigua, Dominica, Martinique, Montserrat, St. Kitts & Nevis).
 
So I wondered if I could find some interesting peppers there.
If so, how should I do this?
 
I've already checked thechileman.org to get a list of varieties coming from the Caribbean and the West Indies.
I know I'll spend some time on the markets to buy local peppers (along with some info about them).
I also contacted the botanical institute there to ask for info and litterature.
 
Would it be worth it to try and find live pepper plants in the forest as well or would it be a waste of time?
As those are islands with a lot of isolated and endemic species, do you think it would be possible for me to find landraces growing in the wild or am I just dreaming?
By the way, when do pepper plant produce fruits in this kind of tropical climate? All year round? During the dry season? During the wet season?
 
Any ideas or advice?
 
Thanks!
 
:cheers:
 
Have you heard of Los Gatos? It is one of the 3 wild pepper populations sampled in Murillo-Amador et al. 2015 "Baseline study of morphometric traits of wild Capsicum annuum growing near two biosphere reserves in Peninsula of Baja California for future conservation management"
 
Please only collect here for preservation, these lands are heavily exploited and I would hate to send someone there just to ruin it even more. That said, I would really love some seed if you have a successful collection trip.
 
Los Gatos is located in a semiarid zone of Baja California Sur, northwest of Mexico (27°01′46″ N, 112°26′59″ W), 680 meter above sea level (masl). Los Gatos is a wild Capsicum population surrounded by some cattle ranches, located in a small range just behind Santa Rosalía, B.C.S., at Santa Lucia Mountain, which joins the Sierra of Guadalupe to the south. This wild Capsicum population is located around the limits of El Vizcaino biosphere reserve, close to the highest hill called La Bandera. Below the Pacific slopes of the mid-peninsular range, the Central Desert stretches from 30°N to 26°N and encompasses the Vizcaino Desert and, to the south of the Madgalena Plain. The soils of this population are shallow, of recent formation and high rate of erosion, characterized as lithosol soils, with low organic matter, have no structure to be composed of unconsolidated material with high sand content. Are set on hills and mountain areas, where the type of vegetation is found of sarcocaule scrub. 
 
 
 
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4425933/pdf/12870_2015_Article_505.pdf
If you have trouble accessing the article, published in BMC Plant Biol., let me know.
 
 
 
EDIT: Oh snap I just realized you were talking about the Caribbean island...
 
Edmick said:
Wow sounds like fun. I was just gonna suggest the street markets but if you could find some wild, that would be awesome. Enjoy your trip and keep us updated!
Click to expand...
 
Thanks a lot!
It's gonna be in the second half of the year (probably around September or October), but of course I'll post here if I find something cool!
 
Gorizza said:
EDIT: Oh snap I just realized you were talking about the Caribbean island...
Click to expand...
 
Haha, yes! :)
Interesting read nonetheless. Thanks!
 
 
AaronTT said:
If you want the goods, you have to get in with the locals. Have a good time, let loose, and take St. Lucia's motto: no pressure, no problem.Trust me, this is the most fruitful way.  
Click to expand...
 
My wife went there often with her family a few years back, so she knows a lot of locals.
Excellent advice, will do!
 
Sounds exciting! Hope you have a fun, safe and successful trip! Keep us posted, be interesting to see new kinds of local sourced peppers!
 
ThatBlondGuy101 said:
Sounds fantastic, be sure to keep us posted!
Click to expand...
 
I will for sure!
 
 
labuyo said:
Sounds exciting! Hope you have a fun, safe and successful trip! Keep us posted, be interesting to see new kinds of local sourced peppers!
Click to expand...
 
Thank you!
I learned so much on this forum, I'd like to be able to give something back to the community. So I really hope I can giveaway some cool seeds when I come back!
 
 
The_NorthEast_ChileMan said:
Make sure you bone up on CBP/AHIS rules!> Pepper (Fruit) from Guadeloupe into All Ports & Can I bring fruits, vegetables, plants or seeds into the U.S. from abroad?
Click to expand...
 
Excellent point!
Bringing fruits from France into Switzerland is not a problem.
I need to check French rules however. Even though the flight from Guadeloupe to Paris is technically a domestic flight, I think there might be some restrictions there.
 
The_NorthEast_ChileMan said:
Make sure you bone up on CBP/AHIS rules!> Pepper (Fruit) from Guadeloupe into All Ports & Can I bring fruits, vegetables, plants or seeds into the U.S. from abroad?
Click to expand...

OOOPPPPSSSS!!!!

Lets try Swiss Customs Administration/Plants which are prohibited from being imported for plants, couldn't find anything on fruit.

 
texas blues said:
Dude is in Switzerland.
 
No worries.
 
Or he could be from Oklahoma.
Click to expand...
 
Can you offer anything other than criticism and poor comic relief? 
 
 
`
 
The_NorthEast_ChileMan said:
Lets try Swiss Customs Administration/Plants which are prohibited from being imported for plants, couldn't find anything on fruit.
Click to expand...
 
Like I said, France to Switzerland is not a problem, because France is in the EU:
 
 
 


2. Other plants or parts of plants (incl. fruits and vegetables)



a) Importation from EU, Norway and Iceland
Plants (living or as plant parts) and bulbs, garden soil or flower soil are not subject to phytosanitary measures, so long as these goods are imported in tourist traffic for personal use, 
Click to expand...
 
 
It's getting fruits from Guadeloupe to Paris that might be trickier.
 
wiriwiri said:
You may consider mailing some seeds back to your home addy while there...its a chance you take...but may work out.
Have fun on your trip.
Click to expand...
 
That's a good idea! Thank you!
 
spinynorman.jpg

 
 
 
Hunt peppers, but be cautious for you are being watched.  
 
 
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top